Last week George Floyd’s death in police custody gained global attention.  It catapulted the long-standing issue of racism towards people of colour in the USA to the forefront of people’s awareness.  Tragically, Mr Floyd’s death is one of many that have occurred in the USA and UK.

Trigger warning: We cannot make a list of all those who have died due to institutional racism, it would be long and many would be hidden. We would like you to read the names of some of the people who have died, slowly and with some thought and curiosity about what happened to them. Please be aware that this may trigger distress.

In the USA

• Rodney King, 1991
• Eric Garner, 2014
• Michael Brown Jr., 2014
• Tamir Rice, 2014
• Sandra Bland, 2015
• Philando Castile. 2016
• Stephon Clarke, 2018
• Breonna Taylor, 2020
• George Floyd, 2020
• Tony McDade, 2020

In the UK

• Stephen Lawrence, 1993
• David Bennett, 1998
• Azelle Rodney, 2005
• Sean Rigg, 2008
• Kingsley Burrell, 2011
• Mark Duggan, 2011
• Anthony Grainger, 2012
• Sheku Bayoh, 2015
• Dalian Atkinson, 2016
• Rashan Charles, 2017
• 72 people, Grenfell, 2017
• Dexter Bristol, 2018

ACP-UK condemns all violence towards disempowered and minoritised groups

Black Lives Matter protests and riots are the language of the desperate.  There is no right way to protest. Protests occur when the right to life and attempts to have the black voice and perspective heard have been denied.  Black people feel angry, sad, anxious, hurt, traumatised and hypervigilant. In the UK black people are more likely to be stopped by the police (between April 2018 and March 2019, there were 4 stop and searches for every 1,000 White people, compared with 38 for every 1,000 Black people). According to Inquest, during the last 30 years there have been 1741 deaths in UK police custody, with 183 Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) individuals dying in either police custody or following police contact.   The proportion of BAME deaths in custody where restraints are used is two times greater than other deaths in custody.  Additionally, BAME deaths in police custody are also nearly two times as likely to occur when mental health issues are present. For black men being arrested increases your risk of death.

 The constant micro and macro aggressions Black people experience daily are devastatingly oppressive.  They creates feelings of powerlessness, loss of control, helplessness and hopelessness, as their basic right to equality and safety have been violated.  All these emotions are normal and legitimate responses to multitudes and generations of trauma, racialised violence and bereavement.  However, in their pain, the Black community is being pathologised, criminalised and brutalised, rather than understood or helped.  Racial inequality, injustice and violence are Public Health and Human Rights issues recognised as a problem in the UK by the United Nations (2018).

It is not long since the Brexit vote in 2016 caused an increase in racial violence and The Windrush Scandal in 2017 devasted black people’s lives. These latest atrocities have occurred during the time of Coronavirus.  Covid-19 has disproportionately affected the Black community in the UK and has made many social inequalities unavoidably transparent. Read more here and view the Public Health England Disparities in the Risk and Outcomes of COVID-19 publication here.

The role of clinical psychologists

In November 2019 ACP-UK gave a commitment to tackling structural racism within our profession.

As professionals in a predominantly white field, clinical psychologists are required to take an anti-racist stance, strive to educate themselves, eliminate structural racism and empower the voices of black people.  The recent news from Health Education England that there will be a 25% expansion in training places for clinical psychology and child and adolescent psychotherapy from September in line with the NHS Long Term Plan, as well as targeted measures to increase diversity among trainees, is welcomed news.  However, the increase in diversity within Clinical Psychology will only be achieved if the systemic, structural and institutionally racist barriers are dismantled.

Racism, politics, power and privilege cannot be separated from the work that we do 

The Health and Care Professions Council and the British Psychological Society have standards and guidelines for practicing psychologists to ensure that we work in anti-racist and ethical ways and with understanding, empathy and integrity. We hold this  responsibility within and outside the therapy room, and within the online and offline world.

The Association of Clinical Psychologists UK

• Will speak out against all forms of minority discrimination including racism.
• Recommends that its members are always mindful of the compounding racial trauma in BAME service users’ recent and past history, and the effects of this on their access to services, engagement, presentation, formulation and individual treatment needs.
• Is committed to supporting the many Clinical Psychologists and Trainees who have been disturbed by this recent violence. Members are welcome to make use of our peer support offer that was originally set up in response to COVID-19.
• Invites members to have an active role in our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion strategy, working with the soon to be elected EDI Director and committee.

Roberta Babb, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Committee Member
Bandana Datta, Co-Director Early Careers
Conor O’Brien, Trainee Representative
Ché Rosebert, Director for External Relations
Mike Wang, ACP-UK Chair

On behalf of the ACP-UK Board